Front draft lug



Jan. 4, 1927. 1,613,167

c. M. HANNAFQRp FRONTv DRAFT LUG Filed May 22, 1925 @that n.214

Patented Jan. 4, 1927.

UNITED STATES PATENT oFF-ICE.

CLEON M. lHANNAFORD, OF RICHMOND, VIRGINIA, AVSSIGNOR TO CAR DEVICESCOM- V PANY, OF RICHMOND, VIRGINIA, A. CORPORATION. OF VIRGINIA.

FRONT DRAFT LUG.

,Application tiled Hay 22, 1925. Serial No. 32,059.

This invention is in the nature of a modification of or improvement uponthe` front draft lug forming the subject of the application of Arthur H.YVeston, filed February 20. 1925. Serial No. 10,617, Patent No.

1,551,353, dated August 25, 1925.

The invention herein consists in extending the plate or body of the lugin the direction of the length of the rear extension, thereby furnishingriveting surfaces adjacent to the rear extension, as I will proceeed nowto explain and finally claim.

In the accompanying drawinfrs illustrating the invention, in the severalfigures of which like parts are similarly designated, Figure 1 is atopplan view, partly in horizontal section, illustrating enough of thecenter sill and adjacent parts to show the application of the presentinvention, and Fig. 2 is a side elevation with the end sill in crosssection. Fig. 3 'is a plan view, in ele vation, of the front draft lugdetached; Fig.

4 is an ed e view, and Fig. 5 an end view developed rom Fig. 3.

Without thereby limitm the invention t any particular form of raft riging or dra-ft sills or center sills, the invention will be described, byway of illustration, in connection with a center sill made up of twometal channel beams, set with their webs upright and in parallelism andspaced apart sufficiently to admit the draft gear.

The channel beams have the bottom flanges 1. top flanges 2, and webs 3,all of any usual or approved construction, and have their webs slottedlongitudinally, as indicated vat 4. to permit the ribs of the frontdraft lugs, hereinafter (particularly described, to extend through anbeyond the said webs.

5 1s the outer portion of an ordinary yoke,

t5 is the shank of the coupler, 7 is the strikf lng plate, and 8 is thedraw-bar carrier,4all

of ordinary or approved construction.

' The invention herein is not limited to these details, and is adaptableto other construetions.

The front draft lug of this invention coinprises a plate or body 9,havinor the side shown uppermost in Fi 4 as a substantially flatsurface, but provi ed with the lon itudinal ribs 10, parallel with aninterme iate slot 11. and surrounding the inner end of said slot, sothat the lug may be fitted flat and snug against'the inside surface ofthe web of the center sill, with the ribs extending through the slot 4,and said ribs projecting outsi e of the web. These ribs are extended at12 beyond the end of the body of the lug, and such extension enters theslot in the web, therebynserving to aline the parts and transmit strainsto the center sill. The lug is provided with the transverse'projec-vtion l3'on the opposite or inner side, so as to form an abutment for thefront follower 14A. This projection or abutment 13 preferably isreinforced by the inclined ribs 15, and there are similar ribs 16 at thelongitudinal edges of the lug which extend back to'and reinforcetheabutment 13.

The plate 9 extends not only laterally be yond the slot and its ribs 10,but also extends web of the center sil ,by any suitable means,

preferabl rivets 18,5Jy applied through the series of oles 19.

ill

Theplate or body 9 is continued at 2()4 so as to surround the extension12 and lap over upon the web of the center sill member around the slotin said web in which the extension 12 is located. This continuation 20is in the nature of a reinforcement and affordsa surface and holes forfour additional rivets 21, the heads of which are countersunk in thecontinuation, as indicated by the dotted lines 22 in Fig. 1, so as notto inter? fere with the operation of the front follower. Thiscontinuation is integral -with the other parts of the front draft lug,and as stated, serves as a reinforcement for the extension 12 in itsengagement with the slot in the web of the center sill member, andconstitutes the modification or improvemen formin the subject of thiscase. The ront draft lug may be convenienti made as a single unitarycasting, and preferably of steel.

One of these lugs is secured to each of the center sill members on theinner side thereof,

lciently large to allow for necessary motion of`.

the draft gear, and so that in bufling the transverse key will abutagainst the extended lim surfaces of the lugs, the strain being takenoff of the'rivets practically by the solid or unslotted rearwardextension 12.

The front draftv lugs of this invention are intended to take the placeof the front draft lugs heretofore used, same beinga component part ofall draft arrangements,inclu sive of vertical plane yoke and frictiondraft gea-r. v y

The luglof Vthis invention has al1 of the advantages of the lug of theapplication ref ferred to, in addition to the reinforcing feature. l f

Variations in the details of construction are permissible Within theprinciple of the invention and the scbpe of the claims follow- 1n yglVhat I claim is 1. A front draft lug, having a body adapt-l fed to beapplied to the inner side of a longitudinally slotted center 'Isillmember, ,and provided with a longitudinal slot to receive a coupler key,a `rear extension adapted tov engage the -slot in the sill member, and ap continuation of the body of the lug beyond said rear extension saidcontinuation in one piece with the bodya-nd provided with holes toreceive means vfor attaching it to the sill member.

2. A front draft lu' having a body slotted longitudinally and a apted tobe applied to the inner side of a longitudinally slotted said centersill members 'and slotted lon iy tudinally and provided with ribsfianking' t 1e sides and inner ends of the slots in the lugs andextending rearwardly and solidly bevond the slots in the lugs and fittedin the slots in the center sill members, said lugs havin gcont-inuations flanking the said'rearward extensions beyond the sidesand rear ends -of -the ribs and provided with countersunk holes forrivets for securing the lugs to the center sill members. v 4 Intestimony whereof I have hereunto set 'my hand this 21st dayof May A.vD. 1925.

CLEON M, HANNAFORD.

